KUNG FU CHAOS (XBOX)
Kung Fu Chaos would be the first game from Just Add Monsters, who after a bit of turmoil with parent company Argonaut Games, would evolve into Ninja Theory. It’s a stark contrast to their later projects, such as the thought-provoking Hellblade, as this one relies on parody while focusing on the party genre. Sadly, it doesn’t entertain on either side, with underwhelming humour, shallow gameplay that swings between boring and frustrating and lacklustre mini-games. Not even the inclusion of Carl Douglas’s “Kung Fu Fighting” can save this game.
On a console sorely in need of a good party game at the time, an obnoxious movie director sets the stage for Kung Fu Chaos. Shao Ting recruits a ragtag group of actors for his new movie, though his lack of regard for safety measures may cause issues along the way. Just Add Monsters would attempt to parody Japanese culture such as manga and other film tropes, and it’s sometimes quite coarse, with the player often being chastised as a “fat ass” to emphasise your slowness. There are jabs at Monkey King, Blaxploitation with Lucy Cannon and even luchador wrestling. The problem is these crude jokes rarely generate a laugh, instead coming off as a painful pastiche. In an attempt to pay homage to classic Kung Fu films like Enter the Dragon, it ends up misfiring.
Charming visuals sadly don't disguise what is a simplistic fighter
Of course, good gameplay might have salvaged this, but sadly Kung Fu Chaos falls short here. Most of the game focuses on simplistic beat ‘em up stages, where players can strike heavy or light, block and time counters with a well-placed attack. Enemies come in a variety of ninja forms, with later foes focusing on a specific weakness including requiring you to grab, counter and use certain combo strings. It’s very basic, even with a scoring system that rewards you for dispatching foes quickly, and it grows tiresome after a couple of stages. It can also prove frustrating, with poor collision detection seeing you sweep right past foes, cheap blocks and attacks especially with multiple goons and later stages relying on irritating instant-death hazards. With only five lives in a level (albeit with more generating if you start running low), a good run can end in frustration, due to elements outside of your control.
The rest of the experience is made up of mini-games, and they’re some of the most basic and unsatisfying the console would see. Whether it’s throwing a princess to knock ninjas off a platform, doing battle with foes on lillipads which get eaten by a giant fish, or throwing turtles down a waterfall to slow the progress of a piranha, nothing really stands out as either memorable or fun. While the games certainly have a pick-up-and-play appeal which lends itself well to multiplayer, slogging through them alone between the fighting stages proves a chore. Ninja Challenge mixes action stages, mini-games and tutorials together for a slew of challenges, most tasking you with earning up to five stars through bigger accomplishments. However, most will likely speed through this in a single sitting, especially if you opt out of earning max stars. While you do earn Mini Series challenges that reward additional info about each character, they prove far from worthwhile.
The rest of the experience is made up of mini-games, and they’re some of the most basic and unsatisfying the console would see. Whether it’s throwing a princess to knock ninjas off a platform, doing battle with foes on lillipads which get eaten by a giant fish, or throwing turtles down a waterfall to slow the progress of a piranha, nothing really stands out as either memorable or fun. While the games certainly have a pick-up-and-play appeal which lends itself well to multiplayer, slogging through them alone between the fighting stages proves a chore. Ninja Challenge mixes action stages, mini-games and tutorials together for a slew of challenges, most tasking you with earning up to five stars through bigger accomplishments. However, most will likely speed through this in a single sitting, especially if you opt out of earning max stars. While you do earn Mini Series challenges that reward additional info about each character, they prove far from worthwhile.
Of course, party games are usually better suited to multiple players, and there are some options available. Battle lets you duke it out in either free-for-all or teams, and enables you to customise winning conditions such as kills, style and even Mojo which sees one person carrying it for points and killing them gifting Mojo to another. There’s also Championship, which allows you to compete on missions from Ninja Challenge mode, which is a longer form of play. Sadly, for the poor solo player, playing through the game alone is the only way to unlock this series outside of a cheat code. There are also extra characters to unlock, filters to be gained and even endings for each fighter after beating the final boss. Unfortunately, all the mechanical issues apply to this mode, meaning it likely won’t be one which earns replays after the first few sessions.
Perhaps the strongest aspect of Kung Fu Chaos is its visuals, which boast a colourful charm, technical proficiency with a smooth frame rate and some endearingly goofy animations. The stages, such as a floating UFO, also look a treat. The sound utilises a lot of music from the parody source, including the Enter the Dragon theme, and while there’s a novelty to hearing this, the pros are undone by cringe-inducing jokes, the irritating repetition of canned lines and overdone audio effects that drown everything else out. As nice as the game is on the eyes, it’s painful on the ears.
Perhaps the strongest aspect of Kung Fu Chaos is its visuals, which boast a colourful charm, technical proficiency with a smooth frame rate and some endearingly goofy animations. The stages, such as a floating UFO, also look a treat. The sound utilises a lot of music from the parody source, including the Enter the Dragon theme, and while there’s a novelty to hearing this, the pros are undone by cringe-inducing jokes, the irritating repetition of canned lines and overdone audio effects that drown everything else out. As nice as the game is on the eyes, it’s painful on the ears.
The Xbox was in need of a party title, but Kung Fu Chaos sadly misses the mark
Kung Fu Chaos represents a poor time, due to shallow mechanics, frustrating balancing and a sense of humour that induces more cringes than laughter. Only occasionally does everything come together to be fun, usually on the multiplayer side of things, but the aggravation along the way is rarely worth it. Even accounting for the paltry selection of party games on Microsoft’s original console, Xbox collectors should avoid this one like a karate kick to the face.
|
VERDICT
"Kung Fu Chaos is just a poor time, thanks to shallow mechanics, frustrating balancing and a line in humour that is more cringeworthy than humorous." OVERALL: 4/10 |
OTHER GAMES WITH PARTY ELEMENTS REVIEWED